Feeder for corn-shellers.



PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905.

P. H. HELGERSON. FEEDER FOR CORN SHELLERS.

APPLICATION FILED APBHZI, 1905.

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Witnesses Attorneys PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905. P. H. HELGERSON. FEEDER FOR CORN SHELLERS.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 21, 1905.

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Attorneys UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 12, 1905.

Application filed April 21, 1905. Serial No. 256,730.

T0 on whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, PETER H. HELGERSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Inwood, in the county of Lyon and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Feeder for Corn-Shellers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to feeding devices for corn-shellers; and it hasparticular reference to that class of feeders which are provided with a plurality of ways, each leading to an opening in the throat of. the corn-sheller and each provided with an ear-carrier in the nature of an endless chain.

Among the objects of the invention are to increase the simplicity and effectiveness of the device; to provide vibratory feeder members of an improved construction, whereby the liability of breakage is minimized; to pro: vide a construction which shall prevent the accumulation of material which will interfere with the operation of the device; to provide chain-guides whereby the carrier-chains will be prevented from slipping their cogs from jumping oif the sprocket-wheels whereby they are carried, which sometimes happens and which frequently causes great injury to the.

machine.

Still another object of the invention is to provide means whereby the operating parts of the device may be thrown into or out of gear at a moments notice and from either side of the machine, thus providing an emergency device which by enabling the machine to be stopped quickly in case of danger from any cause will frequently operate to avoid injury.

With these and other ends in view, which will readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the improved construction and novel arrangement and combination of parts which will be hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings has been illustrated a simple and preferred form of embodiment of the invention, it being, however, understood that no. limitation is necessarily made to the precise structural details therein exhibited, but that the right is reserved to any changes, alterations, and modifications to which recourse may be had within-the scope of the invention and without departing from the spirit orsacrificing the efficiency of the same.

In said drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of a device constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the feedertrough and related parts. Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the same. Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view, taken on the line 4L 4 in Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a perspective detail view of one of the vibratory feeding devices.

Corresponding parts in the several figures are indicated throughout by similar characters of reference. The feeder-trough casing 1, which is in the main of ordinary construction, is provided with outwardly-inclined side flanges 2 2, and it is supported at its delivery end by uprights 3 and braces 4:. In the bottom of the trough are secured a plurality of partitions or guide members 5 5, forming ways 6 6, corresponding in number with the number of holes or receiving-openings in the throat of the corn- -sheller in connectionwlth which the device is to be used. In the accompanying illustrations three partitions and four ways have been shown. provided at its upper end with slots 8, disposed under the upper ends of the ribs or guide members 5. Thelatter, which may be constructed of any suitable tough wood or other material, are provided with transverselyreduced portions forming shanks 9, which The bottom 7 of the trough is 4 separate the upper ends orheads 10 from the greatly reduces the danger of breakage; but

for the purpose of still further minimizing the danger of breakage the heads and the bodies of the ribs are provided with metallic caps 11 and 12, the latter being overlapped by the former, as will be clearly seen in Figs. 1 and 2, so that the parts may move freely with relation to each other.

The heads 10 are connected, by means of pitmen 13, with a crank-shaft 14E, journaled upon the upright 3, said crank-shaft being preferably provided with a plurality of cranks extending in different directions, one for each movable head. The latter are provided with brackets 15, having pins 16, upon which the upper ends of the pitmen are journaled. Each pitman is provided with a force-feed lubricalubricating material may be fed to the cranks of the shaft 14 and to the pins 16.

The upper end of the feed-trough supports a table or platform 19, provided With a plurality of depending flanges 20, one in alinement with each of the vibratory heads, which latter are provided with feed-plates 21, adja- The lat- 1 cent to the sides of the flanges 20. ter have downward extending points 22, which terminate between the rear ends of the feed-plates 21, between which the flanges 20 operate. Said flanges are reduced so that merely their lower edges will extend between the feed-plates when the vibratory heads are at the limits of their downward movements. The object of these flanges and feed-plates is to assist in feeding the ears of corn into the holes of the corn-sheller, and it has been customary to make these parts of such dimensions that the flanges would extend between the feed-plates for a considerable distance at all times. At times when the corn fed to the sheller has been more or less covered with snow snow and ice would then accumulate between said flanges and feed-plates and render the operation very difficult as well as causing danger of breakage. If left over night, the parts would frequently become choked by the material freezing between the flanges and feed-plates, so as to cause great difficulty and annoyance in starting the machine. By the improved construction herein shown these difficulties are largely overcome.

. Upon the uprights 3, near the upper end of the trough, is journaled a shaft 23, carrying sprocket-Wheels'24, that support the upper ends of the feed-chains 25, the upper leads of which run in the Ways between the ribs 5 and the lower leads of which run beneath the bottom of the trough. The lower or front ends of the feed-chains are supported by pulleys 26, journaled in frames 27, which are connected, by means of links 28, with a cross-bar 29, secured to a pair of brackets 30, which constitute forward and downward extensions of the side pieces of the trough or casing. Secured transversely upon the under side of the latter is a chain-guide consisting of a sheet-metal plate 31, having downturned ends 32, between which are secured a plurality of U-shaped plates 33, which cooperate with each other and with the downturned flanges 32 at the ends of the plate 31 to form as many guides as may be necessary, according to the number of chains employed. Means may be provided When desired for the purpose of taking up slack in the chains; but such means are well known and of ordinary use and have not been specially illustrated in the drawings.

The shaft 23 may be driven from any suitable source of power by means of a chain engaging a sprocket-wheel 34 upon said shaft.

Said sprocket-wheel is mounted loosely upon the shaft, and it has upon one side a clutch member 35, adapted to engage a clutch member 36, which issplined upon the shaft and is provided With a collar 37, having an annular groove 38, engaged by a shipping-lever 39, fulcrumed upon a bracket 40, which extends laterally from the trough or casing. One end of the shipping-lever, which is slightly resilient, extends through a slot 41 in a plate 42, connected with the casing, said slot being provided with a pair of recesses separated by an intermediate beveled projection 43. The free end of the lever may be held in either of the recesses by the action of a coil-spring 44, connecting said lever with a fixed point at 45. It will be obvious that by moving the free end of the shipping-lever from one side to the other of the beveled projection 43 the clutch member 36 will be disengaged from or moved into engagement with the clutch member 35 of the sprocket-wheel 34, as may be desired.

A cross-bar 46 is supported slidably in brackets 47, which depend from the sides of the trough or easing, beneath which the said cross-bar may slide transversely, as will be readily understood. Said cross-bar is provided at the ends thereof with handles 48, whereby it may be conveniently manipulated, and said cross-bar is also connected pivotally with one end of a suitably-supported lever 49, the opposite end of which has a fork 50, engaging the shipping-lever 39, which latter by this mechanism may be manipulated with equal facility on either side of the machine, thus enabling the machine to be started or stopped at a moments notice by a person standing on either side. This is considered a valuable feature of this invention as providing means whereby the machine may be controlled in case of emergency.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the drawings hereto annexed, the operation and advantages of this invention will be readily understood by those skilled in the art to which it appertains. The general construction is simple and inexpensive, and the improvements constituting the invention may be provided and installed very readily. Motion may be transmitted to the crank-shaft 14 either from the shaft 23 or in any other convenient manner.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is 1. A feed-trough subdivided into ways by ribs provided with vibratory heads, and feedchains moving in said Ways.

2. A feed-trough subdivided into ways by ribs provided with reduced shanks and vibratory heads, and feed-chains moving in said ways.

3. A feed-trough subdivided into ways by ribs having vibratory heads separated from the bodies of the ribs by reduced neck-sections, and feed-chains moving in said ways.

4. A feed-trough subdivided into ways by ribs having vibratory heads flexibly connected with the bodies of said ribs by reduced necksections, protective casings for said neck-sections, and feed-chains moving in said ways.

5. A feed-trough subdivided into ways by ribs having vibratory heads flexibly connected with the bodies of said ribs by reduced necksections, protecting-plates connected with the ribs and with the heads respectively one of said plates being overlapped by the other, and feed-chains moving in said ways.

6. A feed-trough, a table or platform supported thereby and having depending flanges provided with downward-extending points, ribs mounted upon the trough and having flexibly-supported vibratory heads provided with feed-plates arranged adjacent to the'sides of the depending flanges, and feed-chains moving in the ways between the ribs.

7 In a feeding device of the class described,

a trough, ribs in said trough provided with PETER H. HELGERSON.

Witnesses:

G. A. ANDERSON, THEODORE B. GOULD. 

